New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, right, stands with Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul during an an election night watch party hosted by the New York State Democratic Committee, Tuesday, Nov. 6, 2018, in New York.(Photo: Mary Altaffer, AP)

Gov. Andrew Cuomo was re-elected and will serve a third term after handily defeating Republican Marc Molinaro, while Letitia James was elected as the first African-American attorney general and Tom DiNapoli won a third term as state comptroller.

"I’m proud of the statement New York has made especially in light of what is going on nationwide because once again New York state defines what it means to be the progressive capital of the nation," Cuomo said in his acceptance speech.

Here are the takeaways from Election Day in New York:

Republican gubernatorial candidate Marc Molinaro delivers his concession speech following the results of Tuesday's election in the City of Poughkeepsie on November 6, 2018.(Photo: Patrick Oehler/Poughkeepsie Journal)

Cuomo wins big

In 2010, Cuomo won his first term by beating Republican Carl Paladino by 63 percent to 33 percent. In 2014, he beat then-Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino by 54 percent to 40 percent.

Against Molinaro, the Dutchess County executive, Cuomo ended up in the middle.

Cuomo was leading Molinaro 59 percent to 37 percent with 99 percent of precincts reporting. He took in about 3.3 million votes to Molinaro's 2 million.

While Molinaro 47 of the state's 62 counties, Cuomo won the ones with the largest population.

Cuomo crushed in New York City; won Westchester and Nassau counties; and won the biggest upstate counties of Erie, Monroe and Onondaga.

It was New York City that largely fueled Cuomo's margin of victory: He won 81.5 percent of the vote there, good for almost half of his total vote count.

Molinaro called for unity in the state after his defeat.

"We are an amazing state. We are diverse as we are united. And we have far more in common than what divides us," he said.

Turnout was up. Way up.

It wasn't even close: Way more New Yorkers headed to the polls than the last two midterm elections.

With 99 percent of precincts reporting, about 5.7 million people cast a ballot for governor in New York this year, up from the 3.9 million in 2014 and 4.7 million in 2010.

Ballots are still being counted, but statewide turnout looks to be around 50 percent among active voters. There were 11.6 million total active registered voters as of November 1, according to the state Board of Elections.

There were plenty of signs turnout would be up.

For one, more than 400,000 people requested an absentee ballot, close to double the amount that did in 2014.

New York's September state-level primary also saw a huge uptick in voters.

Voting levels did not approach 2016 presidential levels, however. About 7.7 million New Yorkers cast a ballot in New York that year.

State Sen. Andrea Stewart-Cousins, D-Yonkers, is poised to be Senate majority leader in New York.(Photo: David McKay Wilson/The Journal News)

Democrats win big in NY Senate

Democrats didn't just flip control of the state Senate. They won a cushion of at least a handful of seats.

As many as 40 Democrats won state Senate races Tuesday, though one — Sen. Simcha Felder of Brooklyn — sits with the GOP. Republicans had not conceded in two races in which Democrats had a lead.

There are 63 seats in the Senate, meaning Democrats will have a majority with a significant cushion when they return to Albany in January.

Republicans held control this year by a single seat, and even that was with the aide of Felder.

"I am confident our majority will grow even larger after all results are counted, and we will finally give New Yorkers the progressive leadership they have been demanding," soon-to-be Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, D-Yonkers, said in a statement.

New York City Public Advocate Letitia James speaks during a news conference, Friday, Aug. 10, 2018, in New York. James will face off against Leecia Eve, an attorney who was an aide to Hillary Clinton and Cuomo, Zephyr Teachout, a professor at Fordham Law School, and congressman Sean Patrick Maloney in the Democratic primary race for attorney general.(AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)(Photo: Mary Altaffer, AP)

Democrats retain control of statewide seats

Democrats swept control of New York's statewide elected positions. Again.

No Republican has won a statewide seat since Gov. George Pataki won a third term in 2002. And with Democrats winning big all across New York, this wasn't the GOP's year, either.

Cuomo easily won re-election, while Letitia James won the open attorney general position with 62 percent of the vote.

The same can be said of Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli, who won a third full term with 67 percent of the vote.